Eyesex
by Wordsplat
Summary: Cultural Education Night, aka Tony-makes-Steve-watch-Supernatural-with-him Night, becomes a bit interesting when Tony has to explain the meaning of "eyesex" to Steve, and they both begin to contemplate how they've been looking at each other lately. Oneshot, TonyxSteve


"What do you mean, you're not going?" Coulson raised an eyebrow at Tony, who stood resolute with his arms crossed, and Steve, who stood at his side with an apologetic shrug.

"Why might the Man of Iron and the Good Captain miss out on a night of such wonderful festivities?" Thor queried.

Natasha snorted at the 'wonderful festivities' line; a boring night of schmoozing up some good press to make up for the destruction they'd caused in their last fight was more like.

"Yeah, why do they get to skip?" Clint demanded.

"Look, I take Cap's cultural education very seriously. No skipping classes," Tony shook his head at the others. Then, he shot a feisty grin at Steve, "Or I might have to punish you."

"Can't risk getting in trouble, now can I?" Steve laughed in return.

"…you two are disgusting," Clint made a face, "I take it back. I don't even want you guys there, you'll just spread sexy-sex hormones all over everything."

"We are _not-"_

"Yeah, together, whatever," Clint waved them off, not even listening at this point.

"It _is _kind of a required thing," Bruce reminded them.

"Tonight," Tony declared seriously, "Is Cultural Education 101 night, and that's final."

"Weirdos," Clint muttered, "One of these nights you two are going to realize we've been right all along and you've secretly been banging, and it's all going to go downhill from there."

"I think I would know if that sort of…thing…was happening, Clint," Steve sighed, sick of their insinuations. He and Tony were friends; was that not allowed in the future? Jeez, cut a guy some slack.

"Yeah. I'd definitely remember hitting," Tony gestured to Steve's all around upper body, "_This. _For the record, oh Captain Purity Ring, I know you're all about abstinence but someone has to lick those abs of yours at some point, or I'm considering it a crime against America. Literally."

Clint made a retching noise, and the others groaned.

"For the last time, Tony, I don't wear a purity ring and I'm not against sex, I just-"

"Yeah, yeah, right person, I got it. Anyway. Tonight we're on to season four of Supernatural, where-"

"That's not even cultural education, you're just using this as an excuse to make someone watch that stupid show with you," Natasha rolled her eyes.

"Hey, Supernatural is the peak of culture," Tony huffed.

"Suuure it is," Bruce sighed, "I give up."

"Is that the show with the angels and demons and ghosts and stuff?" Clint squinted.

"I believe that is what the term Supernatural describes, is it not?" Thor interjected, and for a brief moment everyone had a moment of silence for the fact that Thor had said something rather insightful.

"You're damn right it is, big guy," Tony slapped him on the back, "And it's damn awesome."

"I like it," Steve shrugged simply.

"We're not going to get them to go," Natasha shook her head, taking Clint by the arm and dragging him away.

"Fine, you two play footsie all night, see if I care. I'll just spend the entire night explaining why the Captain of the team and Mr. Genius whatever-the-rest-of-it-was Famous Richy Rich aren't there. It won't be weird or anything, thanks for taking me into consideration as you so often do, Stark," Coulson grouched, giving up and stalking out of the room.

"He's quite the firecracker, ain't he?" Tony snickered, "Loki never stood a chance."

"No he didn't," Steve agreed, then, with a grin, "Season four?"

"Season four," Tony grinned back.

* * *

"They need to get it on," Tony declared at the end of the first episode.

"Tony," Steve rolled his eyes, dismissing him, far too used to Tony's usual commentary._  
_

After another episode or two, he brought it up again.

"They really should though," Tony continued, as if their conversation had never paused. Steve knew him well enough to take it stride at this point, "Look at how they're _looking _at each other right now, they're like-"

"Tony, they're just looking at each other, same as any two people look at each other. That's how you and I look at each other. It's just…looking," Steve sighed.

"Have I seriously not given you The Talk yet?"

"Tony," Steve blushed, "I've had The Talk, okay, jeez. I'm not _that _much of a blushing virigin."

"Not_ that_ The Talk, the Eyesex Talk," Tony corrected, then, with a sneaky grin, "But you are a blushing virgin, then."

"I don't blush that much," Steve huffed, though the red tint to his cheeks said otherwise, "And what on earth is 'eyesex'?"

"Steve, you're blushing all over right now. I wouldn't be surprised if your toes were red."

"You have no possible way of knowing where I blush and where I don't."

"There are plenty of _possible _ways…"

"Tony," Steve chided fondly.

"Just sayin', Captain," Tony stuck out his tongue, "Anyway, eyesex is when two people are _dying _to bone each other, but for whatever reason they won't admit it to themselves or each other, so they just undress each other with their eyes instead."

"U-undress each other?" Steve questioned, suddenly feeling rather self-conscious about the notebook he had tucked under his bed.

There were quite a number of pictures of Tony in there; Tony was his best friend, he spent a ton of time with the man, so of course he drew Tony. What he was suddenly feeling guilty about, however, was the perhaps unnecessary amount of shirtless Tony's in those pages. He had always simply reasoned that it was easier to draw Tony like that because it helped him better grasp the anatomy and perspective and...

Yeah, it sounded stupid to him too.

"There goes that blush, Captain. You suddenly realizing what an eyesex-deviant you are?" Tony wagged his eyebrows suggestively.

"Of course not!" Steve blushed, but turned back to the show in an attempt to hide it, "Quiet Tony, I'm trying to watch."

"Sure you are," Tony snickered.

Instead of returning his attention to the show, however, Tony observed Steve. That blush of his really did seem to go everywhere; the red was all the way down his neck, and Tony had to wonder exactly how low it went. His broad super soldier chest, maybe? Those abs that were like solid little packages of steel? To, perhaps…other regions?

_Well, that escalated rather quickly, _Tony thought to himself, snatching a pillow and casually holding it over his lap before the super soldier could turn back and see Tony's own soldier rising to attention.

Another episode passed before Steve piped up.

"Oh."

"Oh?"

"I think I get it."

"Get what?"

Tony was now relieved of his problem, but was still trying to figure out when, exactly, Steve's abs had begun to have that particular…effect on him. Well. Best friend or not, Tony supposed, it was hard to deny the soldier's good looks. The perfect blonde hair, the soulful blue eyes, the strong jawline, the insanely ripped body…

God fucking damn it.

"The, uh, eyesex thing," Steve continued on unaware of Tony's growing problem, "I get it. They _are_ looking at each other differently. Like…like they matter."

Tony was preoccupied with his own issue and busy praying Steve didn't look his way before he could oh-so-casually grab another pillow, or perhaps he might have noticed Steve's eagerness to not make eye contact.

Steve, on the other hand, was busy trying to tell himself Tony did not, repeat, did not look at him like that. Of course not. Yeah…Steve wasn't too great at fooling himself. Tony _did _look at him like that; he looked at him like that a lot. It was one of the things Steve had always loved about Tony-er, the platonic, friend kind of love, of course-he looked at Steve like he mattered, like Tony really cared about what was bothering Steve, or even just what was on his mind. Though Tony could be very outwardly sarcastic and dismissive at times, it was clear he did care about Steve. He never treated Steve like his opinions mattered any less just because he was from another time, of a different mindset. He just treated Steve like his friend.

Maybe there was more to this eyesex thing than Steve had thought.

He chanced a glance in Tony's direction.

Tony squirmed, obviously uncomfortable, hugging a couch pillow as he watched the show; maybe the show was what Tony was uncomfortable about. Maybe he didn't like the idea of two guys having, um, eyesex. Then again, Tony was always joking about sex and flirty things and something about abs and licking them and crimes against America.

So maybe he didn't care all that much.

And if Steve was honest with himself, he was pretty sure he looked at Tony the way Tony looked at him. So…what was stopping him exact-

"Oh, fuck it," Tony declared, and suddenly Tony's mouth was on Steve's, hot and insistent, and wasn't _that _just all kinds of fantastic.

Then Tony pulled away to look at Steve; in spite of all his momentary bravado, he was now clearly second-guessing himself, checking to see if Steve wanted him the same way. And suddenly Steve could see it, the "eyesex" look, sort of, but a little different than Tony had described. It wasn't just about stripping away clothes, but layers. Tony was looking at Steve like he could see who Steve was, who he really was, under all his Captain America pretenses, under his frozen-in-ice trauma, under all his attempts to be the legend everyone wanted him to be. It was just Tony Stark looking at Steve Rogers; two people seeing each other for exactly who they were.

"What are you thinking?"

Tony's voice was quieter than usual, and though he hadn't moved away entirely, he'd shifted, almost out of Steve's reach-probably made nervous by Steve's silence-and that just wouldn't do. So Steve grabbed Tony by the waist and pulled the smaller man into his lap, quickly making it quite clear exactly what he thought.


End file.
